Welcome to my Blog. Here you will find a variety of things...information about Mona's Handcrafted Gifts & Quilts(i.e. new items, sales, contests, etc.), links to some of my favorite sellers, featured artist spotlights, and more!

Tuesday, July 26, 2011

I met Jessica through the Promotional Frenzy team...she is a new member and was looking for mentor. Our team leader, Galla, assigned me to her. Jessica is very quick learner also very keen. Before I finish sending all the information in convos to her she is off and running and completing her tasks.

Lets get to know a bit about her than I will give you her social links and thoughtout the feature you will see some of her gorgeous creations.

***My name is Jess! I LOVE LOVE LOVE to create art and since I have no classroom to create in (I am an unemployed art teacher) I love to sell things I make on Etsy. A creative outlet is a MUST for me!!

*** I love to paint, make jewelry (esp. with peacock feathers!!), woodburn, draw, photography and my newest love is sculpting with polymer clay!!

*** In 2010 I lost both my children to miscarriage so with a heavy heart and the knowledge of such loss I have begun to make memorial art. For those that have experienced such a loss I am so very sorry for your pain.

Now I will show you where you can find Jess and her beautiful creations:

Tuesday, July 19, 2011

Often chaos ensues because we are trying to juggle too many things in our brains. We can’t focus on any one thing because we are trying to remember everything. It’s exhausting to say the least.

Grab yourself a notebook and just start brain dumping all that needs to be done. Be very detailed with this list because the more steps you list out, the less you have to try and remember. It makes a huge difference to your mental clutter even if you aren’t able to get everything crossed off that list in one day.
list notebook

2. Update your family calendar.

Now take your list to your calendar (and if you don’t have a central family calendar, get one quick!) Make sure your calendar is updated with appointments, school events, things to bring, etc.

For instance, if you need to bring cupcakes to school on Friday, add a note to Thursday’s square to pick them up or make them that day.

3. Menu plan for today.

You may not be menu planning for the whole week yet, but you can menu plan for TODAY. Instead of waiting until the witching hour (isn’t that the worst!), plan what you’ll eat that night in the morning.

Check your freezer, pull some meat out, look up a recipe and you’re all set. 10 minutes of pre-planning will again allow you to stop worrying about it for the rest of the day and free up all sorts of head space. See the pattern here?

Mental clutter = overwhelmed

4. Never leave a room empty-handed.

One of my best tips for staying on top of clutter is to make sure you take something with you every time you leave a room. Do it as you go…dirty dishes, laundry, toys, mail, you name it. If it belongs in a room you’ll be going to or passing, bring it with you!

5. Assign a task to your children.

Too many moms are trying to do it alone. Get your kids involved. Start today. Assign them each one task off your list to complete. I know it’s often faster for us just to do it ourselves but the training has to start somewhere.
kids chores

6. Create a donation station.

Every home needs somewhere to collect the things we no longer need. Grab yourself a big box, mark it with the words donation station and let everyone know what it’s for.

7. Add 5 things to that donation station everyday.

Have every person in your household collect 5 things today to add to that donation station. Set a timer and make a game out of it. See who can be the first to collect their 5 things. Before you know it, that donation station will be full!

8. Create an “I’m Outta Here” shelf.

Similarly you need an errand bin by your front door. I call it my “I’m Outta Here” shelf and it’s somewhere I can collect things that need to be returned to a friend, mailed, returned, etc. That way when I’m heading out I can easily remember what needs to be done and tasks don’t get backlogged.

9. Do a 10-minute tidy before bed.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Do a 10 minute tidy each night before bed to set up your next day for success. Plug in cell phones, check and update your calendar, tidy surfaces, make lunches or whatever it is that needs to be done in order to start the following day on the right foot. It makes a world of difference!

10. Check your attitude.

You do not want to end up like this poor lady:

Finally, stop beating yourself up! Coming down hard on yourself does nothing except make you miserable. Tomorrow is another day. Celebrate every accomplishment no matter how small.

Happy Organizing!!

I found this article by Laura of I’m an Organizing Junkie on Stumble! It is amazing and I wanted to share it to my readers. You must go to her site to see more great ideas.

Tuesday, July 12, 2011

The Etsy Angels work together to raise money for different 'local' charities: the Chintimini Wildlife Rehab Center in Corvallis, Oregon; Friendly Kitchen of Concord, NH; Bellwether Harbor Foundation in Michigan, Ouachita River Valley Animal League in Monroe, Louisiana, Anderson House in Prince Edward Island, Canada, etc.

This month's charity is Loveformaliciababies ! This organization was formed to help support families who have children with forms of Laryngo, Tracheo, Broncho Malacia.

Malacia is described as: "Airways carry air from the nose to the lungs. Some children are born with airways that are too soft. Soft airways do not hold their shape, and air does not flow through as well as it should. There are three places where airways can be soft: the voice box, the windpipe, and the breathing tubes. A person may have softening in one, two or three parts of the airway. This softening is called Malacia."

One of our Special Angels - Ozarknana - has a grandchild with this very serious illness and from the family's experience they found a great need for support for the parents of these children. That is how this organization came to be!

Here is what each Angel is going to do to help this month and you can help us by making a purchase from our shops:

3. To keep potatoes from budding, place an apple in the bag with the potatoes.

4. To prevent egg shells from cracking, add a pinch of salt to the water before hard-boiling.

5. To get the most juice out of fresh lemons, bring them to room temperature & roll them under your palm against the kitchen counter before squeezing.

6. To easily remove burnt-on food from your skillet, simply add a drop or two of dish soap and enough water to cover bottom of pan, and bring to a boil on stovetop-skillet will be much easier to clean.

7. When a cake recipe calls for flouring the baking pan, use a bit of the dry cake mix instead-no white mess on the outside of the cake.

8. If you accidentally over-salt a dish while it's still cooking, drop in a peeled potato-it absorbs the excess salt for an instant "fix me up."

9. Brush beaten egg white over pie crust before baking to yield a beautiful glossy finish.
10. Place a slice of apple in hardened brown sugar to soften it back up.

11. When boiling corn on the cob, add a pinch of sugar to help bring out the corn's natural sweetness. (ah, an old 1940’s Fannie Farmer trick!)

12. To determine whether an egg is fresh, immerse it in a pan of cool, salted water. If it sinks, it is fresh-if it rises to the surface, throw it away.

13. Cure for headaches: Take a lime, cut it in half and rub it on your forehead. The throbbing will go away.
14. Don't throw out all that leftover wine: Freeze into ice cubes for future use in casseroles and sauces.

15. If you have a problem opening jars: Try using latex dishwashing gloves. They give a non-slip grip that makes opening jars easy.

16. Potatoes will take food stains off your fingers. Just slice and rub raw potato on the stains and rinse with water.

17. To get rid of itch from mosquito bite: try applying soap on the area, instant relief.

18. Ants, ants, ants everywhere ... Well, they are said to never cross a chalk line. So get your chalk out and draw a line on the floor or wherever ants tend to march-see for yourself.

19. When you get a splinter, reach for the scotch tape before resorting to tweezers or a needle. Simply put the scotch tape over the splinter, then pull it off. Scotch tape removes most splinters painlessly and easily.

Monday, July 4, 2011

One of the requirements is to have Facebook likes so we decided to have a give away to those that like our team list.... Galla, our team leader has it posted on her blog. Just click on Galla's name and it will take you to her post that tells you all about it.

There are over $300.00 worth of prizes to be won just by liking our page.... so go do it now!

These are a few examples of what is available to be won....many many more too!

Thank you for taking the time to do this and good luck with the giveaway!

About Me

I am a mother of a 32 year old son, have 3 handsome grandsons. I have been with my partner for 34 years! He is very supportive in my crafting .... lol...although he does not understand why I need so much fabric but always have to go to fabric store before I make anything.
After working for a long time as a laborer I returned to college and became a correctional officer.
I love to sew and quilt ...this has lead to my opening my shop on Etsy...I do a lot of custom work and have my crafts in a number of craft shops on consignment.
In the future, my dream is to have a shop of my own and craft full time!